Blue Skies
by Dancing Crimson Snow
Summary: It's been a year. Friends and enemies, some new and some old. Is she really up for another run or does she even have a choice? [Eva?]
1. The Aftermath

**Series:** Oban: Star-Racers

**Fanfiction:** Blue Skies

**Chapter One:** The Aftermath

**Disclaimer:** I wish I owned OSR. But, if I did, I wouldn't be writing fanfiction.

**Summary:** It's been a year. Friends and enemies, some new and some old. Is she really up for another run- or does she even have a choice?

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The race ended, she had won, but such a win would feel so empty after she had denied Satis from crowning her Avatar, feeling lost without Aikka, believing him to be dead only to have him return with the news that -she had no choice- but to become the Avatar and leave them all, climb the stairs to the Temple of the Heart, watch as O died to save the three of them, the entire Kanaletto ordeal, and -Jordan had loved her-.

No, more then that. Jordan had loved her enough to give his life for her, to save her from Kanaletto, to let her live on, to continue living, to be protected by his watchful eye and steady hand and Aikka's magical bow, because sometimes, giving up your opprotunity to save your loved ones would later kill you inside.

The Creators had never had a Human Avatar to teach, little lone one so much in love. Even Jordan was suprised by how well he had taken the transistion. but saving Molly, protecting Molly, keeping her happy was the only thing Jordan could ask for- he was otherwise entirely selfless. But his entity revolved around his precious Molly- even the floating temple had modified itself to bring about his memories of her.

He could wish it didn't remind him so much of Earth when he looked out onto the Oban landscape.

While the Creators did not understand his feeling of love, they understood that everything led back to the human girl Molly...Eva...whatever her name was, and he was determined to protect what she dearly loved, be that the Earth and that Nourasian prince...

But even if it had been the Crog Empire, for Molly, Jordan would save it. For Molly, anything was possible...except the one thing she had wanted the most.

Her mother.

Now that he was the Avatar, Jordan knew things. Things no living man should ever know...but..he was no longer a man. He was some sort of divine being climbing the ladder closer to being God.

But the Avatar wasn't God. God could have brought back Maya for Molly...but, not being God, and not knowing God personally, but knowing him well enough to know that he certantly wouldn't bring back a superficial human racer simply because fate had been undone...

There was little Jordan could do for her on that march.

He couldn't call her Eva, either. To him, that just wasn't her name...

It was perminately Molly, impressed onto his tounge and his mind and every string of magic he wove through his fingers, fate dancing before him like composing a waltz, and he loved it.

The Creators had told him he could not undue the past. Jordan wouldn't have wanted to if he could- if he undid the past, if he saved Maya, Molly would not have exsisted, Don Wei would never have been in the Great Race of Oban, and he would never have been here.

He would have never met the greatest pilot he'd ever seen, he would have never had the chance to hold or, or woke with his arms wrapped around her body, or tease her Prince Charming, or run the turrets in the Wizzing Arrow, all of them.

It had never occered to Jordan until after they had all left that he had been the only one who had ridden in all three racers, three times with Rick, twice on the track and one 'designing' the unusual lightningbolt pattern the Avatar sensed would become his signiture.

Rick couldn't race again, thanks to the accident caused by Kanaletto. As soon as he had become Avatar, he had wanted to help him, but the Creators said no...

Jordan had felt like screaming, he didn't deserve it, he didn't, he deserved peace!

They all did, Jordan concluded...but he would never have it. Fate decided he could never have Molly... she would die long before he stopped being Avatar, the closer he grew to her in such a relationship would only hurt him further.

He was having a hard enough time convincing himself that even dear Prince Aikka would make her happy. He didn't want to believe anyone could have her but himself...but that option no longer exsisted.

Molly didn't belong to him, he determined, he could love her and protect her from Oban, but he could not have her, he could not touch her or calm her when Don Wei went ballistic, or save her from falling to her doom in the Housing Modules, and he could. Not. Have. Her.

But he never managed to stop wanting to.

The aftermath of the Great Race left him getting one of those poofy blue -cute- things. He could barely pronounce the name of the race, but assured himself that after about fifty million years he would understand enough of his changes to fall into sync with the rest of the universe.

But, of course, he only had ten thousand, and he prayed he would learn his place far sooner then that. Of course, it felt odd to be thanking the Avatar, now that he was the man in question.

He decided to retain his thanks from any higher power, and instead often directed them to the still-worn dogtags of himself and his grandfather. Mostly, they were directed to his Grandfather, asking for strength and Guidance if he didn't already have it.

The Creators only helped so much before they got annoyed by the far off look in his eyes and the stark changes to their precious world.

Rick couldn't race, Jordan mused, instead, he had begun teaching Molly and others, winged under the grand cash reserve of Don Wei. Perhaps the world was not so bad.

Stan and Koji went back to work, everyone seemed to slip back into a routine as if none of this had ever happenned. The thought had saddenned Jordan...there would never be the red carpet treatment, and to the entire world, Jordan C. Wilder was dead.

What was ironic was that Jordan attended his own funeral.

His precious Molly, the dear mechanics Stan and Koji, the ace Rick, and the glue that held them all together, Don, did not.

He remembered trying to comfort friends and family, his mother most of all, but none could see him, and his words were whispers among the wind, and his touch that of a ghost.

The Creators informed him that only those who believed in the Avatar would see him. Unfortunately, his mother still believed in Buddah.

Among the collection of things around his temple, a set of prayer beads sat. His mothers, a spare set she had always kept, that she had consequently gone looking for on news of his 'death'.

The only good thing about his entire funeral was that he had gotten full military honors and a entity of salutations. Even the president had popped up, if abit briefly.

The truth would never be known on Earth. There had been a cleaver cover up, the Crog's had lain down their weaponry peacefully according to claim.

It had been the transfer that had demolished control systems in the ships between Crog and Earth. The ships nearby Nourasia had also gone haywire, and eventually everyone had retreated. Jordan would have been contented to blow up all the Crog's in the world, but that wasn't a Avatar's job, and it really had nothing to do with Molly.

Jordan needed to stop thinking so much, he was making himself sadder with every passing moment.

_I hope you relise the gift I've given you, Aikka. Take care of her..._ Jordan had thought, watching the egg-shaped ships take off to deliver them to their homes. His skin had been tingling since the change, but he knew well that he was crying for her.

Fate had been changed. The Creators had gotten Jordan as opposed to their promised Eva, they had been angry indeed, but Jordan had only been saddenned, what ifs flooding his mind at the time.

If Molly had of become the Avatar, Jordan and Aikka probably would have never left Oban. They'd have stayed there, watching her. Eventually the pair would have grown older, and eventually they would have died, and Molly would have lived on.

Jordan let out a string of curses that apparently needed to be the same word to instill any fluency in the art of insulting a wall, a human fist punching hard stone.

It did real little to either portion of the arrangement. Jordan's skin still tingled...

He seriously hoped Aikka appriciated Molly. He hoped he loved her as much as Jordan wished he could, and he hoped that, in time, Molly would move on.

Somehow, blantedly telling Molly he loved her while falling to the end of his life as a human had never been in the intended plans.

"Molly..."

The thoughts that come to you, when the aftermath of what you've done settles and real life begins again.

Jordan hoped he wouldn't hate his entire ten thousand years.

To think, it hadn't even been more than a single short Earth year.


	2. To Be Alone

**Series:** Oban: Star-Racers

**Fanfiction:** Blue Skies

**Chapter Two:** To Be Alone

**Disclaimer:** I wish I owned OSR. But, if I did, I wouldn't be writing fanfiction.

**Summary:** It's been a year. Friends and enemies, some new and some old. Is she really up for another run- or does she even have a choice?

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Thin, delicate fingers wrapped around the thick ceramic coffee mug, crimson eyes staring down into orange coffee, now cold. She'd been awake for hours, just thinking, wondering, thoughts flying on their own will to and from things she did or did not want to really think about at the time.

They had won the race of Oban, at the price of Jordan's exsistance in their lives, and Rick's racing career, a small part of her sanity. The entire thing had sent her spiraling into a depression as soon as they'd gotten on the transport without her partner.

Jordan loved her... and she had condemned him to a life alone. Between that thought, and the coverup of Oban entirely, Eva had never felt more alone.

She felt that way now, alone there in the kitchen at the island counter, everything they had ever done felt like a fairytale when they had gotten home.

They'd fallen into a routine, unable to speak to each other for quite awhile. At first, she'd held strongly onto the memories, her thoughts on Jordan mostly as she returned to school- a public school, this time, but a school was a school.

And she hated school. The boarding school had left a mark on her that wouldn't wash away regardless of how many years went by, of that she was sure.

Stan and Koji went back to work with Miguel; Don, Rick and herself had become a family, and life was forced to go on.

Eva had cried herself to sleep the first month, and then, a inter-galatic race had popped up. It felt wonderful to be back on the track, but the races of Oban had left their mark as well, with jerky movements and a rush to get to the end and the feeling of half of herself missing.

Without Jordan, without the turrets, without the danger of death, nothing was the same. Nothing would ever be the same. Of that much, she was entirely certain, if she was sure of nothing else, she was sure of that.

As her very first race ever had been on Alwas, she would forever be racing as if she would get shot at any moment, and she would always shout for Jordan to keep his mark on her enemy, and be disappointed when she didn't get a reply.

She wasn't entirely sure if she would ever react like normal racers did. And she wasn't sure how to react when she had to face Spirit once more, both having made it to the finals of said race. After the race- which Spirit had won, Eva just didn't have the heart to beat him- they had just stood there staring at one another, Molly looking broken and Spirit, the Fihl equivilent of unsurity.

In the end, she had just clung to him and cried, finding no other way of expressing her sorrow to him. Don had freaked at the act. Spirit had just tried to sooth her, mummering a song of consolation to her from his people- it sounded freakishly like a human lullaby, however-, showing her images in an attempt to sooth her hysterical tears.

Eva had never known anyone to comfort her as he had. It had really brought her up to her normal self again, as he had seen on Alwas. Spirit had been monumentally pleased with her recovery, as had Don, who, though distrusting of Spirit still, had permitted the Fihl to stay in their home for a vacation before he had to return his own planet.

As long as Spirit had been there with his soothing, Eva did not think of what she had lost. It wasn't until he had to leave that she begged him not to go, unable to loose another friend. He promised her his return- soon, very soon. She was his friend too, it appeared.

A week after he left, an exchange student from America moved into their home. She knew Common, as most people on Earth did now days, it had become the official language taught in all schools. She was the silent type, always knew when to talk and when to listen, always seemed to know the words to say, and had a nasty habit for speaking in tongues Eva knew not.

It was like having Spirit back in the house- except the girl liked to stay up until four in the morning making donuts- or another sort of sweet, corrispondingly get up at six and start the coffee, get a shower, and return downstairs at seven with Eva in tow so the racer could eat breakfast before school.

Breakfast, of course, was normally milk and a few slices of buttered toast for Eva, and donuts and coffee for Natasha. Natasha being the student, who the Wei's had more less adopted into their family.

She tended to mother Eva, though, protecting her as a mother would, a silent personality and quick temper that Eva looked up to. "Life," Natasha had said to her once, "Is cruel and biased, but we should not be."

Not to mention, Natasha had a manner of speaking that gave her a steel tongue and an aura that just made people gravitate to her...which could be a bad thing, considering how quick she was to take offense and swing. She took the place of her sister, which she longed for, being an only child, but Eva also felt she was a stark replacement for her mother, as if Maya had finally come back to her.

While Don was her father, and Rick acted like a brother, the latter also acted like a father and friend as well... Don was still a manager, but he did his best at being a father. He'd been out of it for ten years, it would take some time before he got back into the flow.

Of course...after about a month of going to school, Natasha was banned from it for fighting. Eva had lost track of Natasha's daytime routine after that, though she had managed to get classes videotaped and brought home the other's work so she wouldn't fall so far behind.

But the morning routine didn't change, so when Eva saw the girl appear in the corner of her eye, she didn't bother looking up.

"Thought you didn't like coffee."

Of course, this was the first time Eva had gotten up before Natasha. She just hadn't been able to sleep tonight, and she didn't understand why. Maybe it had been the rain...

"Changed my mind."

Orange coffee had been Jordan's favorite. He rarely drank anything else. Natasha, of course, couldn't stand it, so there were always two coffee pots set out... though one was never used.

Eva used it today, when thoughts of Jordan had seeped into her mind in the dead of night, waking her from her slumber. Oh...why did it have to be Jordan? The Avatar posistion was ment for her! She wanted to protect the both of them!

Natasha had lapsed into silence, and it took Eva a moment to relize that she must have sounded defensive. The other girl, though slightly older, was often so...childish and naive, easily hurt. Her angry was just a front for her pain- the Wei teen had learned that a while back.

Natasha never tried to make Eva feel attacked or uneasy, in fact, she put her all in making Eva feel as happy as possible. She was only stating a fact.

Eva glanced up from her coffee to find Natasha sitting down across from her, her own mug of coffee in hand, the smell of hazelnut wafting through the air, mingling with homemade donuts and the smell of shampoo. Breakfast was a meal the girls shared on their own... Don would get up in about an hour, kidnap a cup of coffee and then see if there was anything he had to do. Natasha would then walk Eva to school, and disappear, and when Don picked her up later on, Natasha would be waiting at home for them to return.

Her deep sigh caused the other to look up, as if startled by the noise. It was rare that she got into a pit of sadness like she did this morning, but...

"My birthday's coming up in a few months.."

Natasha knew about Oban. Regardless of being sworn not to tell, Eva just couldn't keep from telling her. It hurt to much to have Natasha trying to comfort her for things she didn't know, it hurt too much not to have any of those who did not believing her.

Natasha had beat up a bunch of her old friends who had been pretty vicious with their disbelief, which led Eva to trust her... to trust that Natasha wouldn't denie the truth, that she wouldn't brush it off like it never happened.

Much to Eva's brimming pleasure, Natasha had accepted it with silence, never saying if she didn't believe it or if she did, just accepting it for what it was, stating that she had no reason not to trust her words.

Unfortunately, the fact that her birthday was coming made Eva all that much more sad. It would mean the year anniversary of Jordan's rise into being a higher entity, the end of the Oban Race, everything.

It was driving her into a depression again.

As if unsure how to reply, Natasha began to speak cautiously, and Eva clung to every word. "Life, little sister, is never fair. It doesn't let us change the past, and it doesn't give us much control over our own futures. But our path is not set in stone- we must continue forward, and choose to be happy if we wish to be. It's up to you if you want things to change."

The donuts on Natasha's saucer were gone, as was the coffee in her cup, and she pushed her stool back, placing her things in the sink before heading for the door.

"Wait! Where are you going!?" Eva didn't know why she was panicking at the departure of her sister, she just knew she was. She didn't want to be left alone right now, but she wasn't sure Natasha would care. If she was leaving now...

Natasha paused, and turned to look back at her, sending Eva a soft, gentle smile, though she looked sad. "I'm sorry, Eva. Please, get Don to drive you to school today. I need a walk." That said, she turned and disappeared from site.

Suddenly, Eva felt more alone then she ever had before.

Was this what it was like, to be truly alone?


	3. Birthday Wishes

**Series: **Oban: Star-Racers

**Fanfiction:** Blue Skies

**Chapter Three:** Birthday Wishes

**Disclaimer:** I wish I owned OSR. But, if I did, I wouldn't be writing fanfiction.

**Summary:** It's been a year. Friends and enemies, some new and some old. Is she really up for another run- or does she even have a choice?

**Note:** This chapter follows the original character, and is meant to be entirely confusing but also give you abit of information on her. So if you don't like it, that's really not my problem :P Updated early because I personally didn't feel like doing it tomorrow. XD

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"...you called, Mother?"

She twitched at the voice, her body jerking in a world of bleak darkness into a halfway awake state of dreaming, and she gained control over her dream-self. She let hazel eyes fall onto the figure before her, of a race she knew to be the Fihl, from experience.

The Fihl's tell-tale face was by far too familiar, and she gave him a considerate smile. It surprised her that she felt as if she could hear him, but she knew herself to be dreaming, and in a dream-state, everything resounded about ones mind.

He was undoubtedly the same as she. It had happened several times before when the wish to see one another was too great for them to pass. Her smile was the only reaction he got for a long while, but it faltered and she frowned, looking away.

This spooked the Fihl, who stepped forward until he was close enough to her to wrap his arms around her in comfort, if need be.

"Her birthday is coming. She is suffering, Spirit, I can feel it..."

Spirit, Ambassador of the Fihls, with a age of unknown, looked down at the shorter creature, human by appearance, one of his own by her own choices. No, he was not a hybrid of any sort, in fact, he was pureblooded, as his father and grandfather before him. He did not know exactly how the woman had come to be his mother, mearly that she had raised him as her own since he could remember.

And that was all Spirit needed to know.

Just like all he needed to know now was that his mother too was in pain. Perhaps she felt connected to Eva as more then just a friend, but as family? He couldn't be sure. Even so...

"I will come. Expect me when it comes closer."

It was as close to a promise as she would ever get, and she smiled up at him. Even in a dream-state he was still so much taller then she was. She should have suspected that from a five foot frame. The entire universe seemed to be taller then her, besides the Scrubs, it appeared.

She decided it didn't matter and wrapped her arms around her boy, feeling her heart suddenly break. It had been so long...

She felt lost and confused in the months she'd been away from the Fihl. Never before had it been so difficult for her to understand the ways of human nature. Life seemed to be generally messing with her brain...

"I miss you all..." She spoke, even though she needn't say it. The Fihl, after all, were telepaths. But she had never grown to gain the power, and she never pretended to understand the skill. At most, from the transition she had gained slight, confusing empathy... and that was it.

She was surprised when she felt the wind rushing through feathers which were not her own, and realized that Spirit was sharing pleasant memories with her in hopes of easing her suffering. It really was contenting- she loved it when they had taken her to fly.

Until she remembered that it was raining.

"I should go... It is...deadly for me to stay out too long. It is both very cold and very wet." Deadly was correct, humans got ill easily that though her immune system had been strengthened by the Fihl, she was still very much in danger when both came about. The sudden change of temperature would undoubtedly make her sick.

She didn't realize she was crying as she released him and backed away, feeling more and more alone by the moments that passed, until she felt her heel land on a ledge that wasn't there, and gave her son a smile as she fell backwards, weightless into the air. Spirit simply disappeared.

She let her eyes close briefly, and then opened them to the sound of pounding rain, the body of Natasha in the world of the waking once again. With a sigh she looked around, recalling herself to be in the mid-crown branches of a large tree, deep in the forests surrounding her home away from home. She was pleased that none were near to see her jump down, landing in a crouch on a large, wet rock, and nearly smashing her head into the tree.

She groaned, wishing the pain in her legs to subside. It wouldn't for a while, she knew, human bodies were so weak, but with a grace few could muster she managed to stand up on the stone, shivering as she realized she was soaked to the bone...

There would be no going back to Eva's home tonight, would there? Natasha needed a place to keep warm, and Don Wei, the idiot, always had the AC going. She'd freeze to death there... _There's a cave nearby..._ She mused, letting her eyes drift across the trees around her. She was in a large open field, normally perfect for her to see, but, unfortunately, the rain and fog wasn't giving her that option.

Perhaps then, that was her reasoning for wanting to head to the cave as soon as possible. But first, she had to argue with herself. Eva would get worried if she was not home when the schoolgirl and Don arrived, Natasha had made it a point of always being there.

The first time she hadn't been, she'd gone out in a rainstorm much worse then this one. It had rained so hard then that the creak had run up to her waist when she'd tried to cross it to get to the house, she remembered flailing and broken cries as her head dipped beneath the surface once because she didn't know how to swim and she wasn't expecting to slip on the stones in the muggy water.

She had climbed out of it later, further down, unsure why the water and rain had drug her so far but knowing she had to get somewhere, anywhere, that was dry. Water was rare on the world of the Fihl, and there were few who could have taught her, not to mention as they were all flight-types they could not save her should she be drowning.

She had more less crawled to the cave in which she wished to go now, knowing, very well, that she may fall asleep and die from chill. She had wanted to be a doctor once.

Once had been a long time ago.

_To the cave..until my clothes dry._ She mused, stepping lightly on wet grass until she found her way to where she was to reside. Darkness overtook the outside world, placing her in pitch black once again, though, this time, she was still very much awake.


	4. Old Friends

**Series:** Oban: Star-Racers

**Fanfiction:** Blue Skies

**Chapter Four: **Old Friends

**Disclaimer: **I wish I owned OSR. But, if I did, I wouldn't be writing fanfiction.

**Summary: **It's been a year. Friends and enemies, some new and some old. Is she really up for another run- or does she even have a choice?

**-----------**

The days continued in a similar manner for the next few weeks. Eva would fail to wake before Natasha, if the girl had even gone to sleep that night, and on rainy mornings Don Wei would drive her to school, because Natasha would disappear out into the storm.

School was as boring as could be, and hard, too. Eva didn't really care about mathematics- at least, until Natasha explained it to her in a pilot's way. This had startled Eva, who didn't know Natasha knew even a slight thing about a star racer- she just, never seemed interested in it in the slightest.

It kinda scared her, the other always knew what was going on, it seemed, like telepathy. But..humans didn't have telepathy, did they? Eva had heard of people in the history books who claimed to be telepaths, who claimed to know things they couldn't possibly have learned on their own..

It had never been scientifically proven, but it had fascinated Eva on more then one occasion. Sometimes, she wished she could read minds on her own. Alas, that had been an impossible dream. Human's didn't have the talent, unlike the Fihl, and this thought scared her more then a little. To them, her most personal thoughts were open books, but she'd learned in time that they weren't badguys.

They wouldn't use her emotions against her, or her memories, at least, if her dealings with Spirit had taught her anything. In fact, they seemed to have more 'honor' than most people did in the world today. Unlike Sul, they didn't force their way in, either, more like, slipping gently through the seems. The only pain that came from it was the sadness that resurfaced from her memories. But Spirit had brushed away that too, soothing her with comforting songs and mummers.

After school, Don would normally pick her up. And they would go home to find Natasha waiting for them, food on the table. Not quite dinner, but food regardless. After setting Eva up to do her schoolwork - _"If you put it off until later, it won't get done at all." - _Natasha would then promptly disappear from view. A few hours later, she would show up with dinner plates in hand. If Eva's homework was done, and Don was finished with his own, they would eat in the dining room together. If Rick was home from...wherever he had been prior, the extra plate set out on the table would get some use.

It had been eleven years since her mother had died, however, ever since Natasha had come into their household, there were four plates always set. Rick had the honor of using the last one, if he didn't show, Natasha would always explain her reasonings - _"She is still here, little sister. With you, with your father. She sits at this table every night with you. Can you not feel her, too?" _- and then, if Rick did show -_ "She's already eaten. Don't worry. She doesn't need as much as you or I."_

Since learning about Maya, Natasha had made a crucial effort to make Eva and Don feel better, saying that her spirit roamed the house. Eva never felt it, but she had no reason to doubt the other. Maybe, just maybe, believing that she was there still would help heal the scars?

If it had been anyone else, the mention of her mother would have made her break down and cry. But, for some reason, when it came from Natasha it didn't. At least, not at first. She made it a point not to cry infront of the other, perhaps because somewhere deep down, Eva felt Natasha truly believed in what she said.

The school bell startled Eva out of her thoughts, and for the first time since she had begun school here, Eva Wei was the last out of her classroom.

On normal days, she would be the first one out. And then she would go see the teachers Natasha had, collecting classwork which Natasha would end up doing late in the night and slip into Eva's bag before she left that morning. On normal days, the sun would be shining and there wouldn't be a cloud in the sky and--

Don wasn't there.

Her father wasn't in the parking lot, his old style blue car missing from her crimson site. Instead, Natasha stood there, drenched from head to toe thanks to the heavy pleats of rain falling from the sky in sheets. But, for some reason, Eva suspected this was not the Natasha she was used to. No, definitely not, because this Natasha was wearing a outfit reserved only for the Fihl.

It was a simple gray material, like she'd seen Spirit wear- actually, the only thing she'd ever seen Spirit wear. It wasn't much different then his, either, except it didn't have stains around the hem, and the collar was trimmed in a emerald green color. However, unlike all the Fihl Eva had ever seen, Natasha wore sleeves, very much similar to those worn by the Nourasians. These, too, were a smoke-gray color, trimmed the same as the main dress. Unlike the Nourasians, however, there were no metal bands to hold the sleeves in place.

Dispite being soaked to the bone in clothes foreign to her, Natasha looked right at home. As if being loosely clad and in the rain was normal.

"Natasha?"

The black-haired teen turned to her, a blissful smile on her face, as if there was really no wrong going on. She held her arms out, and waved the girl out into the storm. "Your father sent me to fetch you! He has to work late tonight!" Eva almost didn't hear her, because a clash of thunder rocked the air while the older girl spoke.

Eva couldn't help but wonder if the older girl was insane or if she was just...well..insane. To be honest, she'd never seen the girl acting so carefree, as if nothing at all mattered to her. And to tell the honest, complete truth, this scared Eva more then the thought that Natasha was a telepath.

_"Human's are creatures of habit, Eva. What they've done in their history is what they will continue to do." _And unless Natasha was really a Fihl and Eva had gone blissfully unaware this entire time, she was human too. By Natasha's own logic, what Eva was witnessing before her shouldn't be happening.

With a frown, the Wei teen stepped out from under the safety of the ledge into the pounding rain, books and diskman safely tucked into her bag. The approximately fifteen foot between the ending of the school roof and the edge of the tree where Natasha stood was enough time to make her clothes cling to her, and Eva thought it unfair that Natasha refused to get her drivers license. "You should get a car." She told the beaming girl with a scowl. The other appeared unphased.

"So should you... but your not sixteen yet, little sister." Or maybe she just needed to bring her rocket seat to school with her...

"So where's Dad?" Natasha just closed her eyes, a gentle smile on her face. Eva took the moment to examine the other's clothes more closely, but they looked the same as before. Except, on closer inspection, she realized they were clinging to the shorter girl's very frame.

Eva was proud to say she was five inches taller then the American.

"Don is at work. Something went wrong at the hanger and he had to oversee the repairs." Natasha cracked hazel eyes open to look at her, doing her best to look unruffled in the rain. _So it really does bother her... _Eva thought, eying her cautiously. Something seemed weird about her that she couldn't quite place.

"And you got those clothes...?"

This sparked something behind Natasha's eyes. Eva had seen it in others enough to recognize the look of surprise that the otherwise silent girl possessed. And then, the surprise disappeared into sadness, though Natasha still looked blissfully happy on the outside. She didn't answer, though, obviously avoiding the question, and inclined her head to the tree to their side. "I escorted an old friend. He wished to see you."

For a fleeting moment, Eva thought it was Jordan. Or Aikka, at least, and for a brief moment after she'd turned she was disappointed not to find them, before the site of the Fihl Ambassador standing there, dry as a cork under the tree, instantly drove her into motion. The star-racing pilot all but tackled her alien friend, fresh tears pricking at the corner of her eyes that went unnoticed now, for her face was buried in Spirit's chest.

A familiar face, a familiar friend. Someone who was there, who had known it all and seen it all with her, as if he had really been there in her place. Someone who could _really _empathize.

The ever-comforting feeling of being held greeted Eva, black arms wrapped around her, drawing her closer to him in a gesture almost too human. It would have been, if the tense-ness she felt in his muscles hadn't reminded her that he was probably freaked out by this display.

Then again...

Natasha hastily avoided hugging Eva at all times, tried her best to avoid touching her unless it was really necessary. Don, too, seemed afraid to hug her, worried that he was going to fast in fathering Eva and that she might lash out at him instead, a year wasn't long enough to know how to parent someone you hardly knew, hugging her cautiously incase, just incase, he had to let go in a rush to avoid flying fists. Spirit, however, actually hugged her, willing, if a bit guarded.

It was not unlike the feeling of protection and warmth Jordan had given her a year ago on Oban.

It made her feel so much better when the familiar humming of Spirit's vocal cords greeted her ears, but it nearly scared her to death when she realized that another set had joined it, a set that didn't belong to her. The voice was a little shaky, and a good deal uncertain, as if the owner wasn't sure they should be singing at all. She wondered who it was, before she remembered that the only other living creature in the schoolyard was Natasha.

...why would Natasha know a Fihl song?

It didn't make sense, really, but Eva could put sense to very few things Natasha ever did. She assumed that the other had spent time with the Fihl before, possibly her family was space-based and had come across them. That would explain the clothes and the song. But she couldn't worry about that now- Spirit was here, her friend was back, and there was so much to catch up on!

Drawing away from her friend, her tears mingled with the rain dripping from the crown of the tree. She wasn't sad, though, she was more then happy. For the past few weeks she'd been depressed, unable to draw comfort from anyone around her, but now... Spirit could help. Spirit could always help, he always knew what to do to make her feel better...

"Are you staying for a while?" The slight inclination of his head was the only response she got, but the humming had stopped. He wasn't trying to sooth her anymore, probably more aware of her feelings then she was. Now, the only sound around them was the pounding sheets of rain, and Eva turned around to look at Natasha, and felt her heart drop when she saw the other.

Natasha had walked away from the safety of the tree into the middle of the open parkinglot, her head tilted back and rain splattering on her face. Her eyes were closed, arms spread out to her sides. The large sleeves looked like wings, and for a split second in time Eva wondered if she was an angel, before she relised that those two distinct lines of water weren't rain.

Movement to her right signified Spirit had stepped forward to be by her side, eyes trained on the other girl as opposed to looking at Eva. "She loves the rain." Even though Eva knew it was in her head, it still sounded like it had come from the Fihl's non-exsistant lips and slipped to her ears. It was her brain simply placing it to him, she reasoned. She found herself replying before she thought about it, scarlet gaze finally catching the sad smile on her face.

"I know."


	5. Alight

**Series:** Oban: Star-Racers

**Fanfiction:** Blue Skies

**Chapter Five:** Alight

**Disclaimer:** We should all already know that I don't own this 

**Note: **I have DECIDED! XD I will not put Fihl speak in quotations. XD I'll just write it in italics instead, to make it more perminant that they're talking telepathically.

----------------

The walk back home was quiet, not unduely so but enough to annoy Eva to death, with only the sound of the rain hitting sharply against the road and sidewalk. The insistant sheets of rain soaked them, and found Eva scowling.

She could understand if it were just quiet. If it was _just_ quiet. But no.

Spirit didn't speak because he was a Fihl, and they were telepaths with no tongues- he had a mouth under that dark shadow he called skin. She'd seen him eat and thereby knew it was there, but if she hadn't, heaven only knew what kind of thoughts she'd of come up with for her essay.

Natasha didn't speak beacuse she just wasn't a speaker. She didn't perticularly like to talk at all, prefering to listen - _"The wise old owl was so wise, Eva, because the less he spoke, the more he heard. And the more he heard, the less he spoke." _- regardless of the matter. But it didn't help that she was skipping ahead of Spirit and herself, not at all- skipping and twirling in the rain like it was the best thing that ever happened.

It helped even less that Eva suspected them to be conversing without her.

And, Eva admitted, it probably wouldn't have been so bad in the end, if it wasn't _raining_.

Eva had come to hate the rain ever since Alwas and Oban alike. Whenever it rained, thoughts and memories returned to her that she wished sometimes she could forget, if only so she could move along. She couldn't, of course- the impossibilities of it all was that she clung to the memories like they were a lifeline.

Sometimes, the strongest memories were of Jordan, because the rain drew out depression. Other times, the memories were of someone else entirely.

Prince Aikka of Nourasia.

They had been through much together. He was her first real friend since..forever. She never had friends back at the Stern Boarding School- people picked on her and goaded her and thought her to be a orphan.

Shy little Eva had quickly grown into the rebulking Eva, getting peircings, tattoos, and changing the color of her hair, snapping at anybody who even thought about saying anything like that.

She had the nasty habit of defending her father far too much, even against the teachers and other staff, often landing her ruefully in detention. The stubborn streak she had inherited from her mother refused to let her back down, however.

But Aikka had been there, accepting her for who and what she was- she felt bad now for lying to him, even if it had been a white lie. How many times had it been in the last year that she wished Aikka would drop out of the sky just long enough for her to appologize to him for _everything._

The rain reminded her suprisingly of one of her best memories of him- in the rain on Alwas, after she had stumbled onto his pit and been accused by his fencing master of being a spy... it may not have seemed like much to anyone else, but to Eva, who desperately needed someone, anyone, to worry about her and care for her enough to come find her and appologize, it meant the world.

Eva suddenly berated herself, feeling bad that she was thinking of Aikka now, when it wasn't him she had left on Oban, alone, forever.

_Will I ever see either of them again?_ She thought, watching numbly as Natasha spun and nearly tripped, stumbling over a rock that wasn't there before managing to right herself, continuing on like it hadn't happened. The Wei teen wondered haphazardly if the American was completely insane, but decided to dwell on the thoughts of her friend and partner instead.

_Or do I have to wait until the time we're all dead?_

_You will see them both again, very soon, Eva._

Eva jerked her head to look up at Spirit, startled. She hadn't felt him enter her mind- she hadn't known he was listening to her thoughts as he walked beside her. She didn't know why she looked at his never-changing face, preasently pointed to Natasha's dancing form as the scenary changed slightly, more trees becoming visible as they had previously turned in the 'driveway' of the Wei family.

It had gotten dark ages ago. Eva worried she might get sick from it all, but the rain was surprisingly warm when it came in contact with her skin.

Or maybe that was just her body tempature dropping thanks to it all.

"What do you mean...?" She found it couldn't be more then a whisper, but knew Spirit had heard all the same. He didn't turn to her, though, nor did he answer.

She didn't think she'd get one, and so she turned back to look at Natasha. She could see their house in the distance and ran forward, passing the older girl in her joy to see a dry building. Natasha just kind of laughed at her, but said nothing to her.

Eva didn't see what had happenned behind her, but a few moments later both Natasha and Spirit ran passed her. She nearly fell flat on her face in surprise, tripping over her own shoes and almost dropping her backpack. Instead, her face twisted into a the familiar, playful grin that had often been on her features almost every race of Alwas, and she leaned forward, hurrying to catch up.

"You wont beat me that easily!"

It had been meant to be serious, but she was laughing- they all were, in fact. Eva had almost forgotten what it was like to laugh, but now...her heart felt so light, as if there wasn't a care in the world. Was this how Natasha felt?

A few moments later, the trio burst into the house, Natasha first, hand curled around the doorknob and her shoulder against the wood, spinning inside with it quick enough to slam against the back wall. Laughter of pure bliss echoed and resounded across the living room as Eva nearly collapsed to get second place, Spirit's running form slowing to a stop, blue eyes resting on both his breathless friends.

Eva could still hear him laughing inside her mind. It was a glorious sound.

After a few minutes, Eva's laughter had subsided into a pleased grin, but glancing at Spirit, she caught that he was looking at her, and she didn't hear him laughing anymore.

_I must appologize. That was childish of me._

Natasha snorted, still giggling a little. "Life is short, so everyone is entitled to acting like a child on occasion."

But to Eva, there were so many things wrong with the way Natasha had said it. Or maybe it was just the fact that Natasha had even said it that made Eva worried- because...that just wasn't something Natasha said. The Wei teen was pretty sure it wasn't even something the other teen ever _thought_ about, but before she could ask what was wrong with her, a fluffy white towel was dropped into her hands.

Startled, Eva looked up, only to find a familiar pair of pitch black sunglasses.

"Rick!" In that instant the towel was dropped and Eva turned, wrapping her arms around the ex-pilot in greeting. Behind her, Natasha and Spirit were silent as Rick pried her off, smiling. Eva knew she would never be as tall as the man.

"Hello there, little mouse. Miss me?"

Eva snorted and let go as soon as she realized this was the same thing Jordan had done when Rick had returned from the hospital on Alwas, giving him a smile regardless. "Of course I did."

Grinning, he ruffled her hair affectionately and turned to look at the other two; Natasha's hair wrapped up in her towel already, though the rest of her was still sopping, and Spirit knelt down with the tiny girl drying his feathers. He didn't try to hide the look of surprise that crossed his face at this scene.

What the...?

"All done." Natasha announced, a proud grin on her face as she drew the towel away from Spirit's head.

Spirit nodded and stood, towering over Natasha's short frame, the younger girl beaming at the alien while the Fihl mearly watched her. Eva once again felt left out, although in a diffrent manner, because this time she was watching the pair slack-jawed. The expression didn't change as she saw Spirit unbutton his clothing and pass it over to Natasha, who took it and disappeared in an instant, off down the hallway.

The duel-haired girl stared blankly at the spot where Spirit stood, calming observing the changes that had happened to the room since his departure, and Natasha had previously occupied.

A noise at her side drew her attention and she turned to find that Rick had turned away in favor of a pizza box Eva hadn't noticed before, but she quickly returned her attention to Spirit.

A voice from nowhere startled her out of her reveir.

"Don't soak the carpet, little sister!"

Hastily Eva picked up her fallen towel and began to dry herself off. She didn't bother replying to Natasha, because she knew she wouldn't get a response in return, so it would have been pointless. By the time Eva had finished drying her mop of hair, she noticed Spirit had moved from his spot by the door to the couch, eating pizza with Rick.

The TV was on, a documentary about prehisotric animals that she really had no intrest in, so she kidnapped a couple of plastic plates and some pizza and headed for the landry room Natasha had disappeared to.

Unfortunately, the landry room was empty- but the dryer and washing machine was going, a pair of baskets full of folded clothes setting besides the machinary.

She didn't have to look to know that Rick's clothes were in the wash. Natasha would have done it as soon as she had seen Rick in the building, always bringing a load of dirty laundry home with him and the american wasted no time in sticking them in the washing machine.

Setting the plates down on the pink basket housing her clothes, Eva picked up the entire thing and headed to put them away in her room, passing Natasha bedroom door as she did so.

She could hear faint music seeping through the other side of the door, and underneeth it the faintest hints of Natasha's voice, and she stopped outside of it, listening. It didn't match the lyrics of the song from what she could hear, which meant she was just speaking plainly. But..to who?

Setting her basket down by the wall, she knocked quietly on the door, half hoping Natasha wouldn't answer, but desperately wishing she would. Much to her surprise, the music stopped in an instant. Less then a minute later, the door cracked open and Natasha's face appeared in the openning.

For what seemed like forever, Eva just stared at her, and Natasha patiently watched her back, unblinking, unmoving, a perfect image of complete and utter calm that Eva barely ever saw in people. To Eva, it was rather intimidating, and she seemed to shrink abit when she realised Natasha was really staring _at_ her.

"I..uh..brought pizza... I thought you might be hungry..."

Natasha produced a partially eaten apple from the crack in the doorway, the skin green in color, part of the core already gone. Eva wasn't sure if she had eaten that or not.

_Oh..._

Oh, of course she had already gotten something to eat. Natasha ate when she was hungry and skipped when she wasn't- why she always came to the dinner table regardless of her hunger was probably more out of habit then anything else.

"Oh... I guess.. I'll just eat it myself... sorry to have bothered you." This said, Eva turned away from her and picked up her basket, heading to her room. She was disappointed, really- a part of her had hoped to spend some time with Natasha, time that though they lived in the same house together they had never actually spent. She knew so little about the other girl it bugged her to no end- it was like living with a complete and utter stranger.

Except most complete and utter strangers didn't make Eva as curious about them as Natasha did.

Eva didn't hear Natasha's door close, but somewhere in the back of her mind she knew it did, because Natasha was secretive like that.. She did, however, hear her voice, and nearly tripped over her own two feet when she did.

"Eva. Would you like to come inside?"

Nearly sixteen, Eva didn't think she should be startled as much as she was, or be as happy as she was by this simple invitation. But the truth was, it wasn't a simple invitation at all, becuse it was Natasha's room, and that place was almost like sacred stomping ground or something.

Even Don wasn't permitted inside, so Eva had never even considered asking, already anticipating a disfavorable answer.

But now... now she was invited. Should she take it? Or should she denie it, and brush it away in hopes she would invite her again another time? No, this offer was not apt to come ever again. She had to take it now!

She cast Natasha brilliant smile. "Sure! Let me put my clothes in my room real quick." Natasha nodded slightly and disappeared back into her room, and Eva wasted no time depositing her clothes in her own. She returned with the plates in hand, incase Natasha changed her mind, to find the door had been open about two inches.

She wondered if she should knock or just walk in, but before she could decide the door openned all the way, and closed just as soon as she stepped in.

A small part of her wondered if she had died and gone to heaven, gaining access to her 'sister's' bedroom, while another part of her wondered if she had stepped into a world devoid of all things holy. Such as a bed.

Natasha's room was basic in design and decour, crimson colored carpet and white walls, a low table based in the center of the room. Natasha had obviously done a little shopping since she had moved in. A small refridgerator was pushed into one corner, a small, green bag setting nearby it.

There was indeed not a bed, but in one of the far corners there was a suspiciously large stack of blankets, though there wasn't a pillow in site, and a clear set of drawers informed Eva that it was half empty itself. The bottom drawer was pulled out, and a black head flecked with orange and white in a mange-pattern popped up breifly to look at her and then disappeared back into it's make-shift box.

Eva recognised the shape as a cat, and realized Don probably didn't even know it exsisted. She knew what her dad would say to having a pet like that, she knew him probably better then he knew himself, but if she ever told him that, he'd come off the wall.

It really wasn't that hard to guess.

"Sit down, little sister."

Eva did so without really knowing what she was doing, red eyes still roaving over over the room. They landed on a beautiful wooden computer desk, a sleek black laptop computer open, a window of an MP3 player obvious to her eyes, the black cloth curtain she assumed was meant to hide it from view pulled back.

For some reason, she had the strange notion that Natasha's closet was slam empty, and truth be told she really had no idea why she thought that way.

"A penny for your thoughts?"

"Huh?" Eva turned back to Natasha, startled and wide-eyed.

"Or perhaps a dollar will let you tell me whats on your mind?" Natasha continued, unphazed by Eva's start as if it hadn't happenned. She just gave her a gentle smile, patiently waiting for Eva to tell her something. Eva knew very well that she was not good at starting topics.

Eva stared at her.

And then she stared some more, before her mouth openned and words tumbled out without her consent. "How do you know Spirit?"

Natasha raised a curious eyebrow at her, frowning slightly. "What makes you think I know him?"

Eva bowed her head slightly, feeling bad for asking, though it had been on her mind for some time now. They were just too close to have been anything but good friends. The scene in the living room only proved it all, it was too bizzare for a pair of strangers.

"I see..." And though she said nothing, Natasha seemed to know anyway. Eva jerked as a soda pop was sat down on the table before her, somewhere just below her nose. Eva blinked and looked up, just in time to see Natasha settle down across from her at the table. "Spirit and I met met when I was much younger." She paused, hesitant to tell her much more, and Eva watched her in ernest.

"I watched him grow from child to Ambassador in a very few number of years, and I held him as he cried every moment. Fihl are not so diffrent, they bleed the same as man, and they feel the same as man.. I was honored when I was permitted to watch him change, just as I was honored when I was permitted to watch you change..." Natasha, who had previously been watching her, cast a look the side, closing her eyes breifly before she looked at Eva once again. "Miss Molly, Pilot of the Earth Coalition."

Even though Eva had told her what had happenned on Alwas and Oban, leaving out some of the more personal parts, the way she said it all and the way she picked her words made Eva suspect she was speaking from memory.

She attributed her wide eyes to that.

"But your sixteen!"

Natasha gave her a wry smile. "Do not judge me by what you see, for one can never believe their eyes. You should know this better than any." She reached out and ruffled her hair. "Don't worry, little sister. All will be revealed as it is needed- do not rush the answers."

Eva obviously didn't like this idea, and it was very much apparent, but she didn't get to say anything before Natasha sniped some pizza off the plates.

"Hm... arigato, little sister."

"Arigato?"

Natasha chuckled. "Ah yes, no one knows much but the common tongue. It means thank you."


	6. Mom?

**Series:** Oban: Star-Racers

**Fanfiction:** Blue Skies

**Chapter Six:** Mom...?

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It had been a week and a half since Spirit arrived, a week and a half since that single conversation, however brief, with Natasha- a conversation that had not developed much further after _Arigato_ because Eva could not keep herself from asking what _other_ words meant.

It had been an entire week since Natasha had left them, duffle bag in hand, proud grin on her face, and words that demanded her return on her own lips - _"I wouldn't miss your party for the world, little sister, but it wouldn't be your sweet sixteen without a grand gift, now would it?"_

_"Is it a car?"_

_"Now Eva, dear, why would I get you something like that? What I've in mind is so much more special."_ - that though Eva believed, she couldn't help but wonder where the other had gone off to, and why?

What was so important that she had to cut it this close to her birthday, that it couldn't have waited...? Eva wanted her to be here, no, she needed her too! Don hadn't been in when Eva was awake, she suspected he'd been staying at the hanger, but she couldn't even begin to imagine why...

Spirit and Rick had been keeping her company, but Eva missed female company, even if that company somehow managed to keep silent for more then eight hours at a time. She had come to realize that Spirit even spoke to her more then that, though not a lot.

It had been glorious when she and Spirit had become friends regardless of Don Wei's insistance against it- Eva remembered his horrified words when she'd clung to her alien friend and _cried_, of all things, though she would never say she was ashamed to have done it. If she hadn't of, she probably wouldn't have her friend now.

"Little mouse! Come help us in the kitchen!"

All to thankful to be away from the TV, which had _nothing_ on, Eva clicked it off and padded her way out of the living room en route to the aformentioned area specifically designed for the glorious art of food preperation- an art which Spirit was unusually good at.

It was dinner time, her birthday was in just a few days- though Eva only knew this because Natasha had demanded she mark it on the calender posted in the hallway, little more then thirteen sheets of paper with numbers and days and pictures of Star Racers, all but fulled to the brim with scrawled writing and stickers- and yet, still no sign of Natasha.

It seemed almost as if she wasn't coming home...

Spirit didn't appear worried by the fact that they hadn't even had a phone call from her, so Eva tried nto too, either, but she knew by the way he looked up at her now that he knew all too well what she was feeling.

Rick appeared worried only on occasion, only when it was appropriate to appear utterly worried about a girl he knew next to nothing about, saying that he trusted her to return. After all, she wouldn't miss the birthday of their favorite little mouse.

Eva cast red eyes to the food they were making. There was salad and steak, some sort of stew which Rick was in the process of sturing, and Eva was surprised to see Spirit plucking rose petals from a fully bloomed flower from their gardens and depositing them into the salad. Eva decided to stare at him until they told her what to do.

Spirit seemed to notice her gaze, or perhaps her thought pattern because he didn't look up from his posistion, though his voice came well into her mind. _Rose petals, good for the digestive track of humans, as well as the skin, lungs, and eyes._

And it totally didn't seem like something Natasha would do. Or it wouldn't have, if she hadn't vagely recalled Natasha putting rose petals on their plates once before.

She remembered that Natasha had eaten them, though, whereas Eva, Don, and Rick had all just pulled them off and set them aside. They hadn't just been for decoration, like they had thought, as Natasha had eaten them, but Eva didn't put much merit in it all until now.

Spirit surprised her with his knoweldge, though apparently limited, of humanities medicine. She would have to ask him about it later, but for now, she took up a chopping knife and cucumber, set at the task at hand.

For now, however, light and friendly conversation would be fine, as she struck up the age old topic game of Truth.

The questions ranged for ages on end, from random thoughts and pop quizes to sunsets and the landscape of the Fihl homeworld.

Eva was quite surprised to learn that it was a planet of rolling hills and lush grasses- not the short green grass, of course, but long savannah-like grass of yellows, golds, and reds. The sky wasn't dis-similar to the clear blue of earth, though it was more often a murky grey color around where he lived, consistantly raining more then five of their days a week.

Apparently it was roughly the same size as Earth, although it spun twice as slow, making their weeks fourteen earth days long. They had a single sun, abit further from them then Earth's own star, resulting in slightly colder tempetures, though when asked about it he told Eva that the chill didn't bother them for their feathers, which were, though downy in this form, kept most of the water away from them regardless.

When asked why Natasha liked to dry his feathers, then, he simply answered that he didn't know, she'd done it for forever, though generally they didn't have a towel on hand and she used her cloak instead.

Eva did her best not to chuckle as the mental image of Natasha drying Spirit's head came to her mind, not hard to imagine because she'd seen the same thing a week or so ago. It was getting harder and harder for her to track time, actually, because every waking moment with Natasha in the house was reserved and seemed to take forever, full of thoughts and dreams and questions that _never got answered_.

Without Natasha, Eva realized she wasn't analyzing every little detail about it all, and she could be free of thinking her every move out ten steps in advance like she knew Natasha expected of her, except every time she saw the girl she wondered _why_ she thought the other wanted her that way. Unfortunately, it was becoming a fast habit to take her time and gather every detail- she didn't want to be left in the dark anymore.

She never wanted to blame Spirit for her mother's death again, or wonder why Aikka was just being mean during the races, or miss out entirely on the fact that Jordan _loved_ her until it was all _too_ late to do _anything_ about it.

She never wanted to be left out of the loop once more, never ever, even though it seemed she had no choice. _I can't believe how close they seem. It's like they've known one another for a million years..._ She thought, scarlet eyes trained on his expressionless face. She didn't realize she had stopped chopping until he turned his full attention on her, pausing in his own activities.

_Yes?_

Eva didn't bother to hide the embarassed flush that crossed her tattooed cheeks, knowing he'd know anyway. "Just thinking about you and Natasha." There was a flash of _something_ behind his blue eyes that were all too diffrent from Natasha's own orbs changing colors. But that emotion was quickly lost to her, and she didn't think she'd ever see it again but she hoped she would, it was so grand when he wasn't hiding things... when nobody was hiding things.

It was too hard to dig beneeth the surface and get under their skin and inside their minds to grab at the snatches of emotion that bothered bubbling up to the surface once in a while. She wondered if Spirit had gotten it from Natasha, or if Natasha had gotten it from Spirit, or if they'd just spent too much time together that it had effected both parties so great that they didn't need to converse to understand one another and they hadn't been able to slide out of the mode when it came to other people.

But then Spirit spoke, his tone light and she could _hear_ the smile on his face as opposed to seeing it, but it meant the same regardless.

_I have missed her. My months away from your home are the longest I have been away from her._

He spoke so fondly that Eva knew there was something more then close friends between them, she just didn't know what. But she desperately wanted to know, she didn't want to be left in the dark again! But she didn't ask, because she didn't want to know more then she wanted to keep her friends.

"Your not worried about her now?"

Spirit just kind of smiled at her. _I have faith in her, as she asked of me many years ago. I know that she will return to me somehow._

Eva hesitated before continuing, asking the first thought on her mind. "How can you put that much trust in one person...?" Was it possible for anyone to put that much trust in anyone, the amount of trust it took to give them the entire control of their life, all the control it took to live just to give it away? She didn't understand how someone could give all of that to someone else.

Spirit's smile seemed to falter, and he bowed his head slightly. _I have always trusted her, and we have always relied on one another. We rely on one another now, as well, but I cannot cling to her forever regardless of what we both may wish. So to worry about her now would be frutile and a dishonor to what we have both come to know._ A hesitant pause, a space of time that was so tense it made Eva want to shout and scream and tremble and hide in a corner all at once, and she watched him expectingly, craving for more.

_My father died last year. Natasha is the only one who has been there for me for as long as I can remember who has never left, who has sworn to never leave. I hold her to her word, Eva, for your Natasha is my mother._

Eva's knife cluttered to the countertop, eyes wide, and she knew subcontiously that Rick had stopped what he was doing as well to look, startled, at the alien.

"You know, I was going to leave that a secret for a while longer, Spirit."

Eva instantly rounded about, slack-jawed to face the owner of the familiar voice. There was Natasha, looking tired as could be, as though she hadn't gotten a day's worth of sleep since she'd left. She still had her duffle bag over her shoulder, and there was a box tucked under her right arm. Her hair, normally loose, was now pulled back in a bizzare ponytail, her clothes rumpled slightly, but otherwise she looked the same.

_I appologize._ Spirit intoned, but Natasha just shook her head and waved him off.

"I was going to tell them on Eva's birthday anyway, so technically you just saved me time. Thanks."


End file.
